This is a list of my favourite things of these first six months of our trip.
Favourite Language: Czech
I really liked Czech because of how easy it was to learn. The pronunciation was easy and Duolingo made it way easy as well. Duolingo is the app/website I use to learn the languages of all the countries we visit.
Favourite Food: The food in Turkey
Since I don’t really have an all time favourite food, I decided to choose a country where I like the food most. Turkey was the country I chose. I didn’t just like the foods people eat every day there, I also liked the foods that my mom made every day, like pasta, stir fry, curry and much more delicious meals. I really liked the kebabs there too.
Favourite Accommodation: Felanitx, Mallorca, Spain
I really liked this place because it was a huge house and I got my own room/bathroom. We only stayed there for two nights after our sailing week and before flying to the mainland of Spain. They also had board games, and an awesome outdoor area. The kitchen and the WiFi were also really good.
Favourite Transportation: Tuk-Tuk
I really like Tuk-Tuks because I like the feel of wind in my face and in Sri Lanka at least, they go super fast. I think I just like driving in Sri Lanka in general, because the city buses are very fun too. They go super fast and sometimes it feels like the bus is leaning so far it’s going to tip!
Favourite beaches: Balestate and Sri Lanka
I really liked the beach in Balestate because of the huge hole Ben and I dug. That hole was awesome because the depth of the hole was deeper than my height. I also liked that we could jump in the hole and splash in the water on the bottom.
The beaches in Sri Lanka were really fun because we got to go surfing. I think surfing is awesome because the feel of being propelled by the wave is very fun. It takes a lot of practice and I’m still pretty bad at it. Another beach we went to in Sri Lanka was awesome because of the waves. They have so much force that you can pretty much surf the wave, on our bellies, about 30-40 feet onto the beach. We also had a lot of fun playing with some friends we met that are from Russia. They have one son who is five years old. His name is Tikhon, (pronounced tee-hawn). The beaches in Sri Lanka are awesome!
Favourite Park: Zorlu Center Mall Park, Istanbul
I really liked the park that was on top of the Zorlu Center Mall in Istanbul. It was really fun because there was a huge slide that almost went straight down. There was also a big metal tunnel slide. To get to the top of the tunnel slide you have to climb up to a 10 metre tall platform, which is really high. At that park there were also a few mini trampolines in the ground, which were very bouncy. Great park.
Favourite Museum/Science Center: Vida Science Center, Brno, Czech Republic
This science center was absolutely awesome! I really liked the mind puzzles they had on the tables and the long water canal thing. At that science center I went in this gyroscope ride. It turned me around in circles for about two minutes. That was very exciting. I also went down a big slide which was a way to get from the top floor to the main floor. Overall that science center was awesome.
Favourite historical site: Archaeological Park, Paphos, Cyprus
I really liked this place because there were lots of awesome ruins, mosaics, and much more. I really liked climbing half way up the lighthouse to get an amazing view! Another part I liked was that we were with our friends from England and my cousins from Vancouver. It was nice being with them. I also enjoyed going into this long, narrow cave. Since we didn’t bring any flashlights, Owen and I used our camera flashes to see a few steps ahead of us. We also used my dad’s phone flashlight. It was pretty awesome.
Favourite Dessert: Cannoli and Papaya juice with ice cream
In Balestrate, Sicily, Italy I tried a dessert called cannoli. It had a hard shell sprinkled with icing sugar and a creamy, super sweet filling. It was love at first taste. Yesterday, after a surf lesson, we stopped at a place for fresh juice. I ordered a mega size (500ml) papaya juice with a scoop of ice cream inside, it was absolutely delicious.
Jake, standing in ancient Roman ruins. Sofia, Bulgaria – October 2018 
Your secret is safe with this guy. Plovdiv, Bulgaria – October 2018 
Cyprus – December 2018 
Gypsy monkey. Galle, Sri Lanka – January 2019 
Owen and Jake looking for sea turtles. Sri Lanka – January 2019 
Be not afraid, serpent. Sri Lanka – January 2019 
Art class with Dilek. Istanbul – November 2018 
Cruising. Mallorca, Spain – October 2018 
Hiking. Valldemossa, Spain – September 2018 
Jake is the Rubik’s master. Check out the video by clicking HERE. Istanbul – November 2018
Great job Jake see if your other bros. can out do that.Miss you
Jake,
Sounds like you are enjoying the experience of a lifetime. With all the countries that you have visited, I imagine you are seeing a far different world than what you remembered in Canada. Does the travel make you feel differently about life back home?
Elaine and I are in Laos which borders Thailand. One of the things that jumps out at me every time I visit another country is the amount of plastic garbage everywhere. During our bus travels through Laos, the sides of the road were littered with plastic bottles and other debris. This is a common problem throughout the world, particularly in third world countries.
Do you have any thoughts on how countries can minimize or eliminate this problem? I know you’re a bright young man so perhaps you may be the one that solves this world blight. Sometimes it takes a young mind and a fresh viewpoint for others to embrace change.
Good luck with your future travels and keep on smiling.
Mike
Hi Mike! I’ve been noticing a lot of garbage around the world as well. I thought there was a lot of litter in Whitby, but that’s nothing compared to places like Italy, and southeast Asia. I think that making the waste management systems better in other countries would help. In Italy there was only one garbage truck in one of the towns we were staying in, and when that truck was full, I’m pretty sure it just stopped collecting, and no other truck came. In Sri Lanka, I think they should make wider roads, so garbage trucks can actually get to the less busy parts of town. I also think that there should be a good recycling system in some of these countries, because that would limit the plastics on the sides of the road, and the oceans and seas. Another thing that bothers me is the fact that in some countries the tap water isn’t safe to drink, so we are forced to drink from plastic water bottles, but those just end up in trash, because there was no recycle bins or even a recycling system. That’s what I think about the garbage pollution in countries around the world, thanks for that question Mike!